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Mirror Mirror Review

Although slightly better than last year’s dreadful Sucker Punch, Mirror Mirror falls flat on its face as a toothless and inane girl power allegory chock full of crazy imagery and pathetic, heavy handed attempts at symbolism. This shouldn’t come as a shock since the film comes to us from the mind of director Tarsem Singh (The Cell, Immortals) and producer Brett Ratner, neither of whom are ever praised for their subtlety or their outstanding portrayals of female characters. Aside from two admittedly delightful lead performances from Lily Collins and Julia Roberts, this subversion of the Snow White fairy tale feels a lot like Snyder’s most recent opus: an allegedly feminist text so obviously created by a bunch of bros that seemingly expect medals for finally creating female characters that aren’t entirely sex objects.

On the dawn of her 18th birthday Snow White (Collins) decides she’s fed up with the tyrannical rule of her evil step-mother (Roberts), and she escapes from the castle she’s been cooped up in after her father’s demise to strike off through the forests and villages of the land on her own. After rescuing a prince/future love interest (Armie Hammer) who was robbed by the seven dwarfs (all with vastly different names here and played by little people except when they put on their stilts and start doing acrobatics). Snow is horrified to find out that the peasants of the town are taxed beyond their means. After trying to come between her royal step-mother and the new prince upon her return, Snow is banished and presumed killed by the queen’s henchman (Nathan Lane). To set things right, Snow becomes a bandit alongside the dwarfs in a Robin Hood-styled fight to win back the prince and reclaim the kingdom in the name of all that’s right.

The biggest and most glaring problem with the film comes from the non-stop comedic touches that Singh simply doesn’t know how to handle. He cares so much about his opulent visuals and attention to production design that he doesn’t realize his story comes in dead on arrival. An interesting drinking game could be made from the number of times a couch or an ottoman take centre stage over the actors trying to make a scene work. His aesthetic choices destroy any potential punchlines.

On top of being a “comedy,” Mirror Mirror also posits itself as family entertainment despite a bunch of leering sexual references and a sequence where we watch a pair of birds take massive dumps on camera before Roberts gets it smeared all over her face while her orifices are being filled with maggots for the most disgusting makeover ever. The actual base story isn’t far removed from one of the more recent Disney princess films like Enchanted or Tangled, but Tarsem just doesn’t seem to understand that kids can get really terrified by crazy shit. It’s like Labrynth mated with a sketch from You Can’t Do That on Television. It all looks immaculate and stunning, but none of it remotely adds up to anything worthwhile.

The script courtesy of Machine Gun Preacher scribe Jason Keller and first timer Melissa Wallack contains a teeth-grinding level of smugness and self-reflextivity. The film does manage to subvert the famed Grimm Brothers fairy tale by making the prince the character in need of rescue, but when he balks at Snow’s heroics by saying that the hero/damsel in distress dynamic has been “focus grouped” and proven to work, the writers show just how little they think of their audience despite the auspices of being something progressive. They share their director’s inability to understand that using subtlety and not spelling things out for your viewers is far more revolutionary than beating them over the head with it. Maybe the script really was written with children in mind, but I doubt that any youngsters will fully grasp just what the intent here was.

Through it all, though, Roberts and Collins shine. Collins makes a great heroine and an even better Snow White. Even if the movie doesn’t match the goodness of her character, Collins is nothing if not genuine. Meanwhile, Roberts approaches the role of a baddy with great aplomb and ravenous scenery chewing. She looks to be having a blast. It’s just a shame that the rest of the cast gets thoroughly wasted in one note roles, especially Hammer and Lane who are just on screen to get thoroughly embarrassed at every turn. Although, there is a cameo at the end of the film that does work simply because it might be one of the best film nerd in-jokes in years. It’s too good to spoil, but not nearly enough to save the movie.

I honestly have no clue who this movie was made for, but to some degree I could see less discerning 12-16 year old girls who haven’t seen Labyrinth but have seen Sucker Punch digging it, but almost anyone old enough to know better will probably balk at this. Everyone has movies they loved as a kid that they probably feel really embarrassed about liking today. Mirror Mirror can only aspire to be one of those movies for this generation.

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Comments

http://profiles.google.com/coreypierceart Corey Pierce

Counter comment (copy pasted from Letterboxd):

Within a minute of it’s runtime, Mirror Mirror slaps you in the face
with the unusual, leaving you suspicious and distant about where it
might go, and you have about 10 to 15 minutes to decide if you want to
go with it. We see a backstory presented much like the intro to Hellboy
II, or the Deathly Hallows story, and Julia Roberts is cracking wise.
It’s undermining it’s own epic mythology. The trailer for this film was
not good, and Julia Roberts opening this film in that manner could
confirm the worst for those who had prejudices going in.
But as I
am often likely to do, within the first 15 minutes the bombast and
whatthefuckness of it all gave me an increasing amount of faith in
Tarsem’s vision, and from there I fell in love, enough to walk out of
the theater feeling like I had just witnessed the Speed Racer of
princess films.
I’ll say outright of all the participants, Julia
Roberts might still be the only thing I’d change if given the
opportunity. I’d prefer a Michelle Pfieffer, a more obvious vamp/camp
worker, and hope she would bring it like she did in Hairspray. Moving on
from there, here’s where Mirror Mirror works
Character, casting,
stylistic bombast, confidence in its own adaptations, the willingness
to take risks with tone, risks with the expectations of a fairy tale
film, and risks with the expectations of Tarsem’s style.
Tarsem’s
usual tricks are here, the fabric porn, the color palate, the composed
grandness of it all. But by taking on a fairy tale he’s opened the door
to influences from the warm fuzziness Jeunet’s Amelie, the swashbuckling
of Robin Hood stories, the woodland fantasy of the Harry Potter world,
Tim Burton-ish stabs at costuming, the adventurous spirit of Gilliams
Time Bandits and Baron Muchausen, and the slapstick madcap humor of
Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge. And then when you think you’re done, there’s
Bollywood, and you realize there was a bit of that in there all along as
well. The mishmash does feel as risky and inspired as Speed Racer was
for me, and I can only respect and applaud such ballsy work.
Yes,
the story is more Robin Hood than the Snow White story you’re used to.
Lily Collins, daughter of Phil Collins, is AMAZING here, and a massive
contrast to the emo waif Snow White we’re getting from Kristen Stewart
later this year. She’s feminine but eventually Zorro-ish in attitude and
spirit, she has the magnetic charm of a young Jennifer Connelly, and
she’s as gorgeous too. She is a perfect Snow White. Armie Hammer is in
Jon Hamm Junior mode. The dwarves are all fantastic, oozing personality,
and especially feel inspired by Jeunet-ish ensemble casting taste,
Gilliam’s sense of mischief, and Luhrmann’s unpredictable whimsy. Tarsem
uses them to push his own offbeat equivalent of steampunk in their
‘giant’ battle attire. Nathan Lane is working Disney buffoon assistant
mode, which is one of the off putting elements in the opening minutes
but quite enjoyable by the end. Also Disneylike is some of Menken’s
score, not a surprise when his name popped up in the credits.
The
humor is deliberately corner, much like Speed Racer’s “nonja” one
liners and the kind of quick quips you’d maybe see from an animated
sidekick in an animated film. When you put this in Tarsem’s world, its’
one of those things that’s a little weird at first, but if you let it
wash over you, will have you giggling or smiling often.
Overall I
can’t help but be in love with the spectacle, creativity and engenuity
in this more hero-driven adaptation. There is a nice surprise near the
end that’s kind of meta regarding one of the actors involved, a spell of
a different kind gets broken there.
Mirror Mirror was a
humongous surprise. It woke my heart up with true love’s kiss. I may end
up being the only one who thinks it’s a masterpiece, but I’ll take
comfort in being so thoroughly convinced that I am right, and that at
least the good part of the theater that clapped and stayed through the
entire credits agrees. Easily my favorite film of 2012, and the reason I
go to the movies